Escalators and travelators are designed to transport high volumes of passengers. Their handrails, which are synchronized to move with the foot treads, are a safety feature intended to provide balance and support when entering, exiting and riding an escalator or travelator. Escalator and travelator handrails are constructed of flexible rubber materials which, due to the high levels of passenger traffic they endure, accumulate dirt and sludge, which has been discovered to include blood, feces, saliva, food and numerous disease-causing pathogens. Devices for cleaning the rails are of two categories. A first category provides an installed device that stays in place and operates to clean the rail. A second category provides a device that is separate from the escalator or travelator and can be moved into place for cleaning the rail. One example of the second category is in U.S. Pat. No. 9,856,116, the entire content of which is incorporated into this application by reference.